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Vêra Bílá

Biography
by Craig Harris

The musical traditions of Eastern Europe's Gypsies have been given a modern sensibility by singer/songwriter Vêra Bílá and her group Kale. Better known in France than in their homeland, Bílá and…Read Full Biography

Artist Biography
by Craig Harris

The musical traditions of Eastern Europe's Gypsies have been given a modern sensibility by singer/songwriter Vêra Bílá and her group Kale. Better known in France than in their homeland, Bílá and the group craft a sound that reveals a wide range of influences. Born in the small gypsy village of Rokycany, in Bohemia, Bílá has been singing most of her life. Launching her career as a singer in her father's cymbalom band, she formed her own group, Kale, in the late '70s. Their appearance at a folk festival in the mid-'80s led to the band being invited to tour with top Czechoslovakian band Nerez and to a contract with BMG Ariola. Bílá and Kale were the subject of a Mira Erdevicki-directed film, Cerná a Bílá v Barve (Black and White in Color), in spring 1999.